According to court documents and statements made in court, Buckley was part of an interstate scheme with others to steal peoples personal identifying information, including social security numbers and bank account information. Buckley obtained this identification information from his accomplices and online and then used it to obtain fake drivers licenses with other peoples identifying information and his or an accomplices photograph. Buckley and an accomplice used the fake drivers licenses to impersonate bank customers and withdraw or attempt to withdraw money from those bank customers accounts. When entering a bank branch, Buckley or an accomplice wore slings on their arms or bandaged their fingers together in case bank tellers asked why the signature on the withdrawal slip did not match the account owners
signature on file at the bank.
Between October 2017 and February 2018, Buckley or an accomplice entered over 17 bank branches in New Hampshire, Kansas, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Rhode Island and stole or attempted to steal over $90,000 from other peoples bank accounts. On Feb. 27, 2018, Buckley was arrested by the Salem Police Department after attempting to withdraw $6,000 from another persons bank account at a Citizens Bank branch in Salem. Branch employees recognized Buckley from previous internal fraud alerts, denied the transaction, and called the police. In addition to identifying information from the known fraud victims, Buckley and an accomplices cell phones contained bank account information or social security numbers of at
least 52 other individuals.
Buckley previously pleaded guilty on March 15, 2019. Identity theft crimes can have a devastating impact on victims, including financial losses and disruption of their lives, said U.S. Attorney Murray. The law enforcement community will
work to protect citizens from these crimes and to hold identity thieves accountable for their actions. Those who commit these crimes should understand that their conduct will result in federal prison time.
The United States Secret Service is committed to investigating financial crimes including the unauthorized use of personally identifiable information for financial gain, said Timothy Benitez, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service, Manchester Resident Office. The success of this investigation is a result of the cooperation between federal and local law enforcement partners across numerous states.
Todays sentencing is the result of a coordinated effort with our state and federal partners, said Inspector in Charge Joseph W. Cronin of the U.S. Postal Inspection Services Boston Division. These types of financial losses can create hardships and long lasting impacts for the victims. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service will continue to conduct investigations of individuals who compromise the personal information of our customers and jeopardize the integrity the U.S. Mail.
This matter was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Secret Service, and the Overland Park Kansas Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew T. Hunter from the District of New Hampshire and Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley from the District of Kansas.
-- District of New Hampshire
Source: U.S. Secret Service